Post details: Pray for the Missionaries at Christmas
Pray for the Missionaries at Christmas
I'm sure each of us personally knows a missionary or a missionary family who is far away from their loved ones at Christmastime. From personal experience, I know how depressing it can be to have thousands of miles separating you from your children or from your own parents, siblings and various other family members. What was once a holiday filled with laughter and the joy of togetherness as a family becomes a long break void of family and friends. As we watch our church members in their houses filled with family and visitors, we are once again reminded of just how lonely the mission field can be. Sure, there's the internet and phone to connect with our loved ones, but it's not the same as having them personally with you, touching, hugging, eating together . . . Then on top of everything else, usually something in the ministry itself goes bad. It could be anything from church members falling to sin or a blatant lack of commitment to seekers deciding to stop seeking and walk away. Or it could be the frustration of constantly trying to reach souls who have absolutely no interest in your precious Jesus Christ, who ignore you at best. You watch all the work you have done for the Lord deteriorate, all your labor seem to be in vain, all your seeds snatched from the ground, Satan like a roaring lion devouring souls right before your eyes. And your own spirit is crushed, your hopes dashed on the rocks as the waves of despair keep crashing in upon you. And you really wish you could just quit, walk away, get on a plane and fly back home where you could hug your granddaughter every day, where you could surround yourself with people who love you. Or you long to go where you could hide in a back pew of a large church where no one knows you for the failure you consider yourself to be.
Yes, these are the musings of a church planter's wife today in the USA. I know I am not alone in my thoughts. Those on the front lines of spiritual warfare need your prayers. Don't forget to pray, especially at this time of year.
